Investors who bought stocks during the COVID-19 market crash in 2020 have generally experienced some big gains in the past two years. But there is no question some big-name stocks performed better than others since the pandemic bottom.
Naked Brand's Bumpy Ride: One company that has been a roller-coaster investment in the past two years has been swimwear and intimate apparel company-turned commercial electric vehicle technology company Naked Brand, which now goes by Cenntro Electric Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:CENN).
Entering 2020, Naked stock had an abysmal long-term track record due to falling sales, rising losses and extreme dilution. In fact, Naked’s outstanding share jumped a mind-boggling 340,400% over just three years.
At the beginning of 2020, Naked shares were trading at $1.60, even after completing a 1-for-100 reverse stock split in December 2019. By the beginning of March, the stock was back down to 48.9 cents as news of the virus spreading in China prompted concerns about a U.S. pandemic.
On March 9, Naked shares dropped all the way down to 36.1 cents in intraday trading. However, while March 2020 was the low point for the stock market as a whole, Naked shares were nowhere near their bottom.
Naked shares recovered to as high as $2.62 by early June before the sell-off resumed. Naked Brand ultimately bottomed at just 6.61 cents on October 26, 2020.
See Also: If You Invested $1,000 In BlackBerry At Its COVID-19 Pandemic Low, Here's How Much You'd Have Now
Naked In 2022, Beyond: Fortunately for Naked investors, the stock got caught in the middle of a massive coordinated buying campaign in January 2021. Reddit’s WallStreetBets community made Naked one of its primary stocks to buy as part of its targeted short squeeze effort.
The short squeeze sent the stock skyrocketing from under 40 cents per share to as high as $3.40 in a matter of days. Since the dust settled on the January short squeeze, Naked shares dropped back down to under 50 cents before a second squeeze in June sent them back up to $1.
In February 2022, Naked Brands completed a reverse merger with commercial EV maker Cenntro, changed its name to Cenntro Electric Group, completed a 1-for-15 reverse stock split and changed its stock ticker from NAKD to CENN.
Today, Cenntro is trading at a split-adjusted $1.67.
Related Link: If You Invested $1,000 In Uber Stock At Its COVID-19 Pandemic Low, Here's How Much You'd Have Now
Investors who bought Naked Brand stock the day it hit its 2020 pandemic low and held on have somehow managed to time an improbable trade perfectly. In fact, $1,000 in Naked Brand stock bought on Oct. 26, 2020, would be worth about $1,703 today.
At this point, not a single Wall Street analyst covers the stock, but Naked/Cenntro's long-term track record suggests little reason for optimism in the next 12 months. Year-to-date in 2022, Centro shares are down another 68.7%.
Photo courtesy of CenntroAuto.com
